If you know anything about Netflix’s strategy surrounding live sports, you know the streamer’s goal is to turn its limited inventory of games into “events.”
This so-called “eventized” strategy has led the streamer to ink broadcast agreements for properties like MLB’s Opening Day and Home Run Derby, an NFL doubleheader on Christmas Day, and the FIFA Women’s World Cup. Even though Netflix has demonstrated the exact types of properties it’s interested in, that hasn’t stopped the streamer from being floated for larger packages of sports rights as they become available.
But Netflix’s VP of Sports Gabe Spitzer stands by the company’s current strategy, and indicated during a recent appearance on The Varsity podcast that there aren’t any plans to take on higher-volume packages of rights.
“We’re not in the volume business, at least at this point in time,” the executive said. “For us, at least for right now, a more random game on a Friday night is not necessarily the same for us as Opening Night or a Home Run Derby. As a fan, you know what those mean and you might come to watch on Netflix.”
The old adage with Netflix, however, is to look at what the company does, not what it says. The company has a history of publicly saying one thing about its strategy before doing another. For instance, Netflix insisted on remaining an ad-free platform, until it wasn’t. It encouraged password sharing, until it didn’t. It had no interest in releasing movies in theaters, until it committed to doing so as part of the recent Warner Bros. Discovery deal.
So while Spitzer’s comments hold true at this moment in time, that might change down the line. That can even be seen in his comments, where he hedged with qualifiers like “at least for right now.”
During a follow-up question about whether the streamer could be interested in a package of local rights — the type of package that could come to market from MLB or the NBA in the next couple of years as those leagues look to centralize local broadcasts — Spitzer said that wasn’t in the cards because Netflix doesn’t like the idea of an add-on subscription.
“Obviously, there’s an added cost for a subscription to MLB. That’s not really in our model right now,” he said.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.